St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1887-11-05

Methods of a Black Hills "Gen-
eral Principles" Jury---COnvict-
ing Because Of Bad Mugs---Two
Prisoners Who SwOre That They
Were Born in This Country and
Their Mother Had Never Been
to America.
Special to the GLOBE.
CUSTER, Nov. 4.-There are some
sensational features about the trial and
conviction of the two Murray brothers
at the recent term of court, and one or
two funny ones-thOugh not to the
brothers. They were convicted of bur-
glary for entering the store of l.. Nor
ris, Rapid City, last June. The real Of
Tense that caused their detection and
arrest was committed here, few weeks
ago, when they attempted to fire the
town by setting flames to livery sta
ble-at least they were suspected of
having started the fire there, because
they were lettering about the town and
'had bad mugs on 'em." They were
trailed to camp back in the hills, in
the woods, where lot of booty was
found cached, some of which was
found to correspond to that lost
from the Morris store in Rapid
city. Among the Doodle there was stuff
that no one claimed. and liberal sup
ply OF grub drawn from neighbOring
cellars and ranches, evidently. In fact,
the appearance and operations of the
Murrays savOred more of the genus
tramp than of the professional burglar,
except the presence in the lair of set
of burglars tools, i'm the use of which
they seemed not very proficient, judg-
ing by their few feats in the Hills. They
were indicted and convicted and SEN
fenced to five years in the territorial
penitentiary-all upon rather incOm-
plete evidence, in the opinion of some
lawyers. The evidence against them
was the property and tools found, their
cOuntenanceS and the failure of their
attorney to put them Oh the stand in
their own defense. This last default is
regarded as the turning point of the case
against them. No testimony that con-
nected them undoubtedly with the bur-
glarly for which they were indictedIwas
submitted, and only general principle
jury" would have convicted upon the
testimony-if they had not been sus-
pected of trying to burn Custer. and had
been put on in their own defense, and
given any account of themselves,
Counsel for the defense now explain
| IllClI hCCplllS lllC Out vi lut
witness box in this manner: When
they Intercepted their clients as to their
history and antecedents, they began by
saying that they were brOthers-a fact
that their utter lack of resemblance did
not substantiate; that they were of
American nativity: that their father
was German name of Murray, and
their mother was an Irish woman; that
they were born in this country, but
their mother had never been in America.
No protestatiOn of their counsel or at
tempted explanation of the miraculous
proposition to which they had attributed
their nativity could move their adj
herence to this story, and the counsel
decided that they dare not take the
chances of putting them on the witness
stand after suck a statement. So they
were left to take the consequences of
silence as to themselves and their bust
ness, and they were sent to the peni-
Tertiary for five years substantially be-
cause they looked bad and could not
tell straight story of their birth. and
were not allowed to tell any. But for
that Irish bull'' the case might have
taken different turn.